Most homeowners prefer to cover their home’s wooden structure with a wood stain. Wood stain provides several benefits, such as enhanced protection against rotting or protecting your wood’s aesthetics. Hence, many choose to invest their time and money in wood stains. However, with so many types available in the market, how can one make the right decision and choose the appropriate wood stain? We will try to help you through this process and describe everything you need to know about two common types of wood stains.
Two Common Types Of Wood Stains:
Oil-based stains:
This is the most common type of wood stain used by homeowners. It’s probably worth its popularity because of its deep wood penetration ability and durability. Oil-based stain utilizes linseed oil because it is non-toxic and a good wood preservative. Another feature of oil stains is mineral spirit, as thinning by mineral spirit sets it apart from other types of wood stains.
Secondly, the oil-based stains also contain dye and pigments. However, some may only feature only dye. The third ingredient used in this type of stain is a binder that helps the pigments to adhere to the wood’s surface. Moreover, some manufacturers use linseed oil as the binder after treating it with special acids to prevent excessive penetration.
An oil stain takes around two to three hours to dry. Therefore, we suggest waiting about three hours before another coat of oil stain and try passing about nine hours before applying the wood finish.
In a nutshell, oil-based stains provide better protection, and it’s durable. On the other, hand the drying of oil stains is very slow.
Water-based stains:
Water-based stains use water instead of organic thinners, making these stains environmentally friendly as they don’t use any VOCs( volatile organic compounds). Consequently, these stains feature a special type of aniline dye that’s water-soluble. Moreover, the high-quality pigments of these stains enhance the appearance of wood grains.
Water-based stains dry very quickly, which makes their application difficult. To counter it, many woodworkers add a slow evaporating solvent, but it reduces the stain color, defeating water-based stains.
Wood preparation is an important aspect of the application process that makes it laboriously slow. Wood is cleaned before applying so there are no dust particles on it. Now, the wood is soaked in water and left overnight. Later, the surface roughness is removed by sanding it, and then your wood is ready for its first coat. Still, after such elaborate preparation, the penetration of water stains is weak. Thus it doesn’t offer good protection to your wood. Although the applying process is time-consuming, many homeowners still opt for it because it enhances the appearance of the wood grains.
Conclusion:
Oil and water-based stains are two types of wood stains with contrasting properties, allowing you to choose one that suits your requirements. For example, if you want better protection, oil-based paints can help with that. On the other hand, to enhance the aesthetic of their wood, you can choose water-based paints. TX-Home Works can help you out with the professional application of these wood stains. You can ring us at 281-841-6146 for more inquiries or book a